Matthew Hayes

Matthew Hayes started farming as an apprentice on Tablehurst Farm in the UK in 1984. He worked on a number of different farms and social farming projects over the subsequent years, until in 1995 he found himself in Hungary with his first wife and then young children. Originally working on composting projects at Gödöllő Agricultural University, he soon got diverted back into growing organic vegetables, and together with colleagues at the university set up the first community support agriculture scheme (CSA) in Hungary in 1998. This project became a student training farm which Matthew managed until 2015. Meanwhile, in 2010 together with friends Matthew set up a small farm/market garden in Zsámbok, a village 60km east of Budapest. This farm became the Zsámboki Biokert. The farm operates as a small commercial market garden and box system supplying local seasonal organic produce to Budapest and the surrounding area. Matthew lives in Zsámbok with his wife, Kata, and two young children, Sára and Jakab. He is on the board of Nyitott Kert Alapítvány (Open Garden Foundation) and a trustee of the Ruskin Mill Land Trust, UK.